Peace, Fruitfulness, and Passion

Looking back on 2007, I came across the three words I used to describe what I hoped 2007 would be.

It was a year of peace. Tim and I got along so well this year. I feel like we really hit a stride in our communication. We lived in a peaceful neighborhood. We enjoyed peaceful sleep with a baby who started sleeping through the night at 12 weeks.

It was also a year of war. We fought depression. We fought fear and worry with Macy's hernia. Tim had stress at work.

It was a year of fruitfulness. Our third child was born. Elliottyoung grossed record revenues. The children grew. Addien learned to talk, Macy learned to move, and Cerys started preschool.

It was also a year of want. Tim worked too hard and wasn't home enough. I missed my friends and family in America. We spent too much time watching tv and not enough time working on our to-do lists. My stint with Creative Memories came to an end.

And passion. We celebrated our five year anniversary. I feel more in love with my husband every day. I was passionate about finding God in my everyday life. I was passionate about being a good mom.

I had lots of days that were just hum-drum as well. I struggled with feeling stuck in my life, feeling like everything is on hold until my kids are a bit older. I don't know where a lot my days went--they seemed to fly by without my participation.

I guess that's life. Full of light and dark, good and evil. That's what I learned in 2007. I learned to let some of my boxes go, to let some color into my black and white viewpoints. I found peace amidst turmoil, joy through sorrow, passion in mundanity.

For 2008 I hope for more of the same. I'd like to see my boundaries of faith, love, and grace pushed further open and to be challenged in those areas. I want to grow as a mom and develop my skills as a leader and teacher. I want to find one new thing to explore, either cooking or writing, I haven't decided. And I want to have joy. Much, much joy.